


Meet The Teacher

by a_poetic_galaxy



Category: The Magnus Archives (Podcast)
Genre: Fluff, Kidfic, M/M, Multiple ships, Single Parent AU, Teacher AU, gerry is a nervous wreck, soft, wtf is canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-04
Updated: 2021-01-04
Packaged: 2021-03-14 07:55:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,965
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28542171
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/a_poetic_galaxy/pseuds/a_poetic_galaxy
Summary: Gerry may have a small crush on his son's teacher, but he sure as hell won't admit that. Little does he know that the feelings are reciprocated.
Relationships: Gerry Delano/Michael Shelley
Comments: 8
Kudos: 20





	Meet The Teacher

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Just_A_Simple_Writer](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Just_A_Simple_Writer/gifts).



> This took forever and the writing styles might end up changing a lot throughout the work, so I apologize for that in advance!  
> Here you go, Jay, I hope you enjoy it!!!

\- single parent/teacher au 

\- gerry's a single father, michael is a 3rd-grade teacher

\- sorry, I know nothing about the British school system so this is done entirely with the Canadian school system in mind 

\- I really remember nothing about being 8, whoops

\- also, I hope you enjoy it!! 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Eric’s a good kid, and Gerry doesn’t have any complaints, even if raising an 8-year-old all by yourself can be hard on occasion. He’s pretty certain that he’s doing something right, based on how Eric acts and the number of friends his son has at school.

Then why is he so nervous?

_It’s just a parent/teacher interview, it’ll be fine._ Gerry tries to reassure himself, doing another once over of his outfit in the mirror. He looks respectable, or so he thinks. Maybe he should tie his hair back?

He knows what Eric’s teacher looks like, having the class photo stuck to the side of the fridge. M. Shelley is exactly Gerry’s type and he hates it, just a bit. He _will not_ let himself crush on his son’s teacher. There isn’t much time to think about that as Eric comes through the door to his dad’s bedroom.  
  
“Ready to go?” Gerry asks as he glances over at his son, settling for leaving his hair down but keeping the hair tie on his wrist just in case. _This’ll have to do_ … he thinks, smoothing down the dove grey button-up once more before he grabs his keys and wallet off of his dresser.   
  
“Yeah, c’mon!” Eric insists, practically dragging his dad to the entryway of their apartment.  
  
Gerry chuckles as he follows, throwing a light-weight jacket on before slipping on his shoes. “Need any help?”

As he expected, Eric shook his head. He could tie his shoes, even if it was still a little difficult sometimes, but he wanted to practice.

\------

Their apartment isn’t very far from the school, only about a 15-minute drive and Gerry had chosen it for that reason, wanting to be close by just in case anything happened. Plus, it’s about the same distance as his workplace and some local parks.

He switches off the ignition, getting out of the car, and waiting up for Eric before taking his son’s hand in his and walking towards the school’s main entrance. Gerry let Eric lead the way from there, making stops along the way when Eric sees a friend and wants to say hi.

When they manage to get to Eric’s classroom, Gerry amazingly doesn’t embarrass himself.

_Pictures don't do him justice..._ He thinks when he first lays eyes on his son's teacher. _His hair looks so soft..._

_Snap out of it! He's your son's teacher, for God's sake!!_

Introductions are soon made, and Gerry quickly learns that his son is, quite frankly, an ideal student - even if he does sometimes get a little too chatty during class. 

Eric was sitting outside in the hallway for the duration of the meeting, but he could definitely tell that his dad wasn’t acting normal whilst he was in the meeting.

It's during one of their conversations when Gerry's thoughts come back full force, almost making him lose his composure but somehow he hangs onto it. He was just listening to Michael talk, but he couldn't even keep his thoughts quiet then.

_God, his lips look so kissable… and just, nice in general…_

They talk for a while, mostly just casual conversation before exchanging emails, and Michael - as Gerry had learnt that that was what the M. stood for - has his next appointment arrive. They exchange goodbyes and Gerry goes back home with Eric, still reeling over the exacerbated feelings that he has for one Mr. Michael Shelley… 

\------

It’s been a month since the parent-teacher meeting, Gerry and Michael have been in sparse contact, mostly for updates about how Eric’s doing at school and things like that. Sometimes they’ll ask each other about how their week has been or Michael will occasionally send Gerry something that he found funny.

The worst part is, Gerry’s got a crush and he knows it, but the irregular contact with Michael and all of it being virtual is a great help in keeping _that_ secret. He has a sneaking suspicion that Eric might be catching on to his crush, however.

Melanie isn’t helping either…

“Still doe-eyed about your son’s teacher?” she asks as Gerry walks into work that morning.

He rolls his eyes, glad for the fact that he doesn’t blush that easily ~~(that’s projection, leo. Shut up)~~ , taking a seat at his desk across from her. “And how was your weekend, Melanie?” 

“Good, good,” Melanie replies. “Spent most of Saturday hiking with Georgie. She says ‘hi’.”

Gerry’s phone goes off at that moment with a notification, and he opens it to find another email from Michael, a smile playing at the edges of his lips.

* * *

_‘Hi, Gerry!_

_Just thought I’d check in to see how your weekend went, did you do anything new?_ _  
__I didn’t do much over the weekend, just did lesson plans but either way, mine was good!_ _  
__Anyway, I should get back to work now._ _  
_ _  
__Best,_

_Michael :)’_

* * *

Gerry lets out a breath of laughter at the email, the smile now appearing fully. Melanie simply rolls her eyes and gives a slight shake of her head, mumbling something that Gerry can’t catch. The rest of the day goes on as normal, even if Melanie still tries to pry more information from Gerry but he refuses to budge. He didn’t want any of the information getting to anyone who could tell Michael.

Two weeks later, Melanie brings up a dilemma.  
  
“It’s not my fault that Jon and Martin canceled last minute,” she complains, running a hand through her hair. “Georgie already bought the tickets, _please_ ?”   
  
Gerry sighs, considering the options. It’s a Friday, Eric’s going to a friend’s for a sleepover and he won’t need picking up until Saturday afternoon… He has no excuses. “Alright, but who’s the fourth?”

“Bring Michael. Georgie and I both want to meet him and it’s an opportunity for you two to get to know each other better!”

So the plans were arranged, and Gerry sends off an email to Michael about it. The response he gets is surprisingly quick and he smiles as he reads the confirmation.

\------

~~(god leo, control yourself. N O gotta get gm together uwu)~~

After the semi-double-date, the four of them head out for coffee, giving all of them a chance to chat and for Gerry to momentarily get lost in his thoughts. 

Had he made a fool of himself during mini-golf? Was laughing at almost every single joke Michael told too much? Was he coming on too strong? 

He takes a sip from his coffee, hoping that it hides the fact that there’s a lot going on behind his eyes and in his brain. 

He has _no_ idea how to flirt! Eric was a result of a week-long fling. Sure, Gerry was still friendly with his mother, but he had no idea how he managed to get her to like him enough for them to have a child…

_Gerard Delano, snap yourself out of it, for goodness sake!_

And he does, miraculously.

There’s conversation for a while before the evening starts to wind down, though not without Melanie intervening in his love life.

“So, are you two free next Saturday?” Melanie asks as she takes a sip from her coffee. “Like, at 7 PM?”  
  
Gerry goes through the calendar on his phone, checking to see just in case. “I’m free, yeah.”   
  
“So am I,” Michael speaks up, hands shoved into his pockets due to the cold outside in the park.   
  
“Perfect!” Melanie exclaims, “I’m not, but I hope you two enjoy your date.” She gives them both a wave before heading off, making some excuse about needing to get home.   
  
Gerry blushes and scowls, plotting how he’d get revenge on Melanie for this. He was going to ask Michael out… or he was at least planning to! So caught up is he in planning that he’d forgotten Michael was still there until he speaks again.

Michael’s cheeks are a darker pink as he spoke, “I mean… I know a place..?” 

Gerry feels his own cheeks grow red, and not just from the cold. He’d honestly expected that he’d have to make the first move. “I… um… o-okay…”

“I’ll pick you up at 7 on Saturday?”  
  
“It’s a date.”

They both give tentative smiles and waves before heading their separate ways.  
  
 _Time to ask Melanie and Georgie to babysit on Saturday, and give Eric a sugar high to exact revenge…_ Gerry thinks to himself on his walk home. 

\------

Gerry finds himself in the same situation when it comes to choosing an outfit for his date with Michael as he was when it came to parent-teacher interviews. So, he gets the only person he could think of to actually help.  
  
“Look, just be yourself, Gerry.” Melanie insists as she sits on Gerry’s bed. “Honestly, Michael likes you for _you_.”

Gerry runs his hands through his hair, “I know, I know…” he huffs out a breath, stopping in his pacing for a moment. “Just… he’s so, y’know,” he makes a sound somewhere between a sigh and a squeal, and Melanie lets out a laugh.

“You’ll be fine,” she assures again. “I’ll bring Eric to mine and Georgie’s place, he can spend the night. Just in case.”

“ _Melanie!_ ” Gerry exclaims, his cheeks going pink. 

“See you tomorrow and enjoy your date!” Melanie replies, and Eric comes in to hug his dad before the two head out, leaving Gerry alone with his thoughts. And their cat, Pixie.

He ends up getting so lost in his thoughts that he almost doesn’t hear the buzzer when it goes off, but Gerry manages to get there in time and let Michael up, greeting him at the door and inviting him inside.

“Hi,” Michael greets with a smile, his eyes not really focusing on Gerry. 

“Hey,” Gerry returns, doing his best to avoid any awkwardness. He still isn’t over the fact that Michael is _incredibly_ handsome. He really, really wants to run his hands through those brilliant, soft, mesmerizing, golden curls. 

He also wants to kiss Michael, hug him, hold his hand as they walk down the street. But he doesn’t, he has no idea what Michael wants. Maybe this is only a friendly date? Those exist, right? After all, Melanie _did_ force them into this.. Maybe Michael was just being nice and is only going on this date with Gerry because he didn’t want to say no in front of her? That does seem like it might be in Michael’s nature to do such a thing. 

_Stop, stop, stop. This isn’t going to get you anywhere!_

It’s then that they arrive at a small diner, and Michael holds the door open for Gerry before following him inside. They sit on either side of the table, and the silence echoes around them as if the rest of the sounds from the diner have been drowned out by the deficit in their skills around each other.

“So… you have a cat?” Michael inquires after what feels like hours.

They’ve both received menus by now, the waitress setting their drinks down in front of them before heading off again, giving them more time to make their decisions on food. 

Gerry looks up from his menu, where he’d been trying to figure out what to get. Michael’s eyes are the same colour as the sky on a cold day in fall, that soft sort of dove grey. Usually, it would make Gerry feel melancholic, but Michael is like a bright ray of sun, breaking through those clouds and bringing back warmth and hope into a world that had seemed so cold.

Gerry realizes that he’s been staring as he clears his throat and glances away, taking a sip from the drink he’d ordered before he responds and hopes that the blush on his cheeks isn’t as noticeable as it feels. “I do,” he answers with a small smile, “her name’s Pixie.” 

They talk for a little longer about mundane things before the waitress comes back to take their orders and the menus away. While waiting for their food to arrive, Gerry learns that Michael’s favourite colour is pastel blue, he enjoys reading in his free time, he loves cats, and his birthday is in October.

Michael looks surprised to find out that Gerry enjoys art, specifically that he likes to draw, and they get lost on this subject until their food arrives, and Gerry takes his phone out at some point to start showing Michael various pictures of some things he’s done. This is also the point where he finds out that Michael’s good at photography, and that he can play piano, and Gerry’s pretty sure he just fell a little harder.

\------

The rest of the date runs smoothly, and both of them are surprised by how easy it is. Instant responses are wonderful, and so is the food. Even if it was mostly conversation filled with getting to know one another, they're both happy.

Gerry takes Michael's hand as they walk back to his apartment, both smiling. “Do you.. want to come up?” he asks once they arrive at the door.

Michael blushes but smiles kindly, “No, I think it’s best if I say goodbye here,” he answers, even if he would really love to go up with Gerry. 

Gerry nods in understanding, glancing away momentarily before he presses a quick kiss to Michael’s lips. “Good night, then, Michael.” 

They head their separate ways after that, deciding to arrange another date, both smiling and feeling quite satisfied.

\------

Sunlight streams in through the curtains, bathing the room in a soft golden glow, casting shadows of the two figures tangled up beneath the blanket onto the wall. Gerry winds one of Michael’s curls around his finger, a tired smile playing on the edges of his lips as they lock eyes once again.

“Move in with me.”

“Wh-what?” Michael splutters, suddenly more awake now than he had been seconds ago.

The reaction makes Gerry nervous, speeding up his mind, regret bubbling up in his stomach. He wants to take it back, keep those words tucked inside himself and locked away, but he wants to be able to have this every day. The warmth in his chest that he gets whenever he sees Michael’s eyes clouded with sleep after just waking up, the soft kisses, quietly talking to one another.

He knows that it won't be like this every morning, since Eric will be around most of the time, but just waking up next to Michael will make every day a tad brighter.

"Move in with me?" Gerry repeats, eyes full of hope. 

Michael's smile is brighter than Gerry's ever seen it before, and his chest fills with warmth. "I'd love to."

Gerry can't think of something to say in return, opting to press a kiss to Michael's lips before they laze around in bed for another half hour and eventually get up to make pancakes for breakfast (some get burnt because they got caught up by slow dancing to a song on the radio).

\------

It takes around one month before Michael’s fully moved in, the process having been gradual so that they could all ease into it. Gerry had talked the situation over with Eric, but easing into it still made the couple more comfortable with the whole idea no matter how gung-ho Eric was about the situation.

Gerry flops down onto the couch, right next to Michael, letting out a huff of air. “All of it’s put away now.”

“Yeah, almost feels a little surreal,” Michael agrees with a soft laugh, tucking some hair behind his ear. “I like it, though, sharing a place with you.”

Gerry can’t stop the smile that spreads across his face as he leans up just a bit to press a gentle kiss to Michael’s cheek, that familiar warmth spreading through his chest once again. Or at least, a cheek kiss was what Gerry was going for, but it’s Michael who turns his head at the last second, meeting Gerry’s lips with a soft and slow kiss. A moment that’s broken by the front door opening and a child’s voice going “ew!”

Breaking apart, they both blush, though Gerry laughs and gets up from the couch to ruffle Eric’s hair. “Thanks for looking after him.”

Sasha waves off the thanks, “It wasn’t a problem at all, besides,” she adds with a smile, “Dani was happy to have a friend over for a playdate.”

They exchange goodbyes, and so do the two 8-year-olds, Gerry heading back into the living room with Eric, the three of them sitting down on the couch and settling on a movie before Michael gets to work on making dinner.

Later that night, after Eric’s been put to bed and both adults have read him 2 chapters each, Gerry’s washing the dishes when Michael comes up behind him, arms going around Gerry’s waist as his head rests on his shoulder. 

Gerry hums in curiosity, wondering what Michael’s up to as he finishes up the dishes, draining the water in the sink before he dries his hands.

"This is nice," Michael comments softly, a lopsided smile on his face before he lets out a soft yawn. "I can't wait for more days spent together with you."

"Neither can I," Gerry agrees as he turns around in Michael's arms, slipping out of them before taking his hand and leading the way to their shared bedroom.

They go to bed that night and tangle themselves up in a pile of limbs underneath the blankets, exchanging soft kisses and ' _I love you_ 's until they fall asleep.

\------


End file.
